Three Main Street merchants already gone

The Bacchus Wine Bar at 442 Main Street, Howse’s Candy Haus in the 333 Main Street Mall and new Everything $10 store at 577 Main Street all closed this spring.

It’s common to see businesses fold this time of year as the ski resorts close, and the recession has deepened that trend, but other factors are also at play in these newly vacated spaces.

The Bacchus Wine Bar was a popular establishment. Internet reviews were always glowing. Robin Valline in the McCarthey Gallery next door said he frequently saw people trying to get in as early as 10 a.m., and especially during the lunch hour, even though it opened in the late afternoon.

"It was a good business plan. I hope something similar comes to Main Street," he said.

Owners Tony and Michelle Eicher could not be contacted for this story, but neighbors believe the closure had more to do with illness than slow business.

Arnold Howse, purveyor of the Howse Candy Haus, had been selling fudge and other treats in Park City for nearly 15 years. Like other merchants in the Main Street Mall, he was on a short-term lease until the building is renovated.

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Arnold’s daughter Annette Howse said it just didn’t make sense to keep paying rent during the slow months when there was no telling if the mall would still be open next winter.

Annette said she had worked in the family business since she was 13. Her father, now 68, had many careers in his life, but always loved making candy. He’s done it for 50 years.

"His heart is in making fudge. He loved running the store," she said.

The family intends to keep the on-line business going, so Parkites can still buy his fudge and other treats at the Web site http://www.candyhowse.com .

Annette said if the family ever opens another location it will likely be in Michigan where he started and where his son owns the original store. The site also said he has 12 children, 52 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

Neighbors of Terry Massey on Main Street said the owner of Everything $10 left suddenly one night a couple months ago in the midst of the ski season. Massey opened last November and predicted his business model would do well with tourists and locals alike.

The store was modeled after several in Las Vegas and was stocked with both inexpensive gifts as well as supplies travelers may have forgotten such as telephone chargers, alarm clocks and socks.